“Ms. Marsh, the plan for your fake death is in place. You will ‘die’ in an accident. After that, your personal information will be destroyed, and you will cease to exist.” A cold, mechanical voice came through Bertha Marsh’s phone.
She smiled and replied with a firm, “Okay.”
“We’ve given you a new identity in Switzerland, and your death will occur half a month later. Please cooperate with us when the time comes.”
Once she hung up, Bertha opened an app and scrolled down. Soon, she received a message that she had successfully booked a flight ticket.
Following that, she drove over to the restaurant where she was supposed to have a date with Simon Zimmer.
She went upstairs shortly after she spoke with a waiter. Simon had booked the second floor and covered the place with roses. Only the table beside the window was not covered in flowers.
It offered the best view, which was a clear view of the entire ocean.
Soon after Bertha sat down, the sight of a man and woman on the beach drew her attention.
The sun shone on the woman’s smooth back. Then the man removed his blazer and covered her while he caressed her thin neck. Bertha could not see their faces, but the man wore a ring with a ruby on his middle finger.
It was cut from the same raw gemstone as the one on Bertha’s ring.
She took her phone out and tapped the name at the top of her contact list. With trembling fingers, she typed her message for around five minutes. During this time, she kept deleting and retyping her message. In the end, she only sent three words.
[Where are you?]
The receiver replied quickly. [I’m at a meeting in the company. What’s wrong?]
Bertha looked outside. The man was typing on his phone with one hand as he forced the woman to remain in the same position.
Bertha held her phone tightly as pain filled her heart. Her eyes stung while she replied, [How much longer will it take before you arrive?]
[An hour.]
Soon, the man sent another message over, as though trying to appease her. [Are you getting antsy from the wait? I’m sorry for making you feel that way. I’ve gotten you a surprise for your birthday, so forgive me, please?]
Bertha no longer looked at the screen. Instead, she kept her eyes fixed on the beach. Soon, the man threw his phone to the side, cradled the woman’s face, and kissed her passionately.
When tears started to blur her vision, Bertha took a deep breath. While she endured the pain in her heart, she forced herself to stop looking. This was perhaps the surprise Simon had mentioned.
An hour and a half later, she heard hurried footsteps from the stairs.
Simon was holding a bouquet of lilies in his arms, along with presents of various sizes.
By this time, Bertha’s tears had dried up, but she did not smile at Simon as usual. Instead, she turned her head away and stared at the setting sun in the distance.
Simon’s eyes were full of regret. Feeling pity for her, he hugged Bertha and anxiously signed to her, “The people in the company just kept pestering me. That’s why I’m late. Don’t be mad, please? I’ll accept whatever punishment you give me.”
She broke free from his embrace. The sweet smell of another woman’s perfume made her want to puke. With dull eyes, she whispered, “Do you still love me, Simon?”
However, Simon was already used to the smell of perfume lingering on him, so he did not think much of it. When he saw the dried tears around Bertha’s eyes, he panicked and signed, “What on earth are you saying? Of course I love you! Everyone knows that I’ll die if I don’t have you by my side.”
Despite his passionate declaration of love, Bertha’s heart did not flutter. She just wore a self-deprecating smile.
Indeed, everyone knew that Simon loved her and could give everything up for her.
Before she met Simon, she did not know what love was.
Her family was no good, as her parents only doted on her younger brother. Ever since she was a child, she would have to eat her brother’s leftovers and constantly patch up her clothes. Her sanitary pads were all sold and bought in bulk because they had already expired. Even her undergarments were items she got from dumpster diving.
To buy her brother a tablet, her parents even stole her scholarship. She also had to beg her parents for an entire day and night just for a chance to study at university.
It was cold that day, and the floor was chilly. She ended up getting a fever and nearly died from it, but her parents just told her to go ahead and die.
